Wireless card reader with contactless and contact card interfaces

• US 9,507,972 B2
• Filed: 05/11/2015
• Issued: 11/29/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 07/02/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Square Inc (Block, Inc. (f/k/a Square, Inc.))
• Inventors: Babu, Amish, Dorogusker, Jesse, Lamba, Kartik, Sather, Elliot
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Michael G
• Assistant Examiner(s): TARDIF, DAVID P
• Application Number:
  US14/709,375
• Publication Number:
  US 20150242663A1
• Time in Patent Office: 568 Days
• Field of Search: 235/380
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3209 Monitoring remote activity, e.g. over telephone lines or network connections
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3215 Monitoring of peripheral devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3287 by switching off individual functional units in the computer system
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0004 Hybrid readers
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0013 by galvanic contacts, e.g. card connectors for ISO-7816 compliant smart cards or memory cards, e.g. SD card readers connectors in general H01R13/00; connectors for SIM cards used in mobile phones or the like H04B1/3816
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/0073 having multiple insertion slots, the respective slots suited for the same or different card form factors
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/084 sensing magnetic material by relative movement detecting flux changes without altering its magnetised state
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10128 the step consisting of detection of the presence of one or more record carriers in the vicinity of the interrogation device
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10297 arrangements for handling protocols designed for non-contact record carriers such as RFIDs NFCs, e.g. ISO/IEC 14443 and 18092 cryptographic protocols H04L9/00; network security protocols H04L63/00; real-time communication protocols in data switching networks H04L65/00; network protocols for data switching network services H04L67/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/202 Interconnection or interaction of plural electronic cash registers [ECR] or to host computer, e.g. network details, transfer of information from host to ECR or from ECR to ECR
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/204 comprising interface for record bearing medium or carrier for electronic funds transfer or payment credit
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/3278 RFID or NFC payments by means of M-devices
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/4012 Verifying personal identification numbers [PIN]
• CPC Class Codes: G07F 7/0886 the card reader being portable for interacting with a POS or ECR in realizing a payment transaction
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0229 where the received signal is a wanted signal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0251 using monitoring of local events, e.g. events related to user activity
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 52/0254 detecting a user operation or a tactile contact or a motion of the device
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/10 Technologies improving the efficiency by using switched-mode power supplies [SMPS], i.e. efficient power electronics conversion e.g. power factor correction or reduction of losses in power supplies or efficient standby modes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02B 70/30 Systems integrating technologies related to power network operation and communication or information technologies for improving the carbon footprint of the management of residential or tertiary loads, i.e. smart grids as climate change mitigation technology in the buildings sector, including also the last stages of power distribution and the control, monitoring or operating management systems at local level
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 : Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 30/70 : in wireless communication networks

Abstract

Methods, systems, and apparatus, for a payment card reader comprising: a frame, where the frame includes a top surface, a bottom surface, a first side surface, and a second side surface, a second side surface of the side surfaces on an opposite side of the frame from the first side surface, the first side surface including a groove configured to receive a swipe of a magnetic stripe card, the second side surface including a slot configured to receive insertion of a chip card; a magnetic stripe reader interface; a chip card reader interface; circuitry configured to direct signals from the magnetic stripe reader interface and the chip card reader interface to a microcontroller in the card reader; and circuitry configured to communicate wirelessly between the card reader and a computing device.

Claims

1. A point of sale system comprising a merchant portable communications device and a battery operated payment object reader, which together operate to receive payment object information at the battery operated payment object reader, to transmit the payment object information to the merchant portable communications, and to transmit the payment object information to a payment processing service:

the merchant portable communications device including;

a first wireless communication protocol adaptor,

a user interface configured to receive a payment authorization from a holder of the payment object;

a network communication interface configured to transmit payment object information over an external network to a payment processing service to process a payment transaction; and

the battery operated payment object reader including;

a near field communication (NFC) reader configured to communicate with an NFC enabled payment object,

a chip object reader having an electrical contact that is configured to contact a chip contact of a chip payment object to read the chip payment object,

a second wireless communication protocol adaptor configured to communicate over a wireless local area network with the merchant portable communications device first wireless communication protocol adaptor,

a microcontroller configured to execute instructions, the instructions effective to receive the payment object information from one of the NFC reader and the chip object reader, and to cause the second wireless communication protocol adaptor to transmit the payment object information to the first wireless communication protocol adaptor of the merchant portable communications device, and

a battery configured to supply power to each of the NFC reader, the chip object reader, the second wireless communication protocol adaptor, and the microcontroller.

2. The point of sale system of claim 1, wherein the instructions are effective to selectively activate the NFC reader, the chip object reader, and the second wireless communication protocol adaptor.

3. The point of sale system of claim 1, wherein the battery operated payment object reader further includes:

a wake-up circuit configured to activate the battery operated payment object reader upon a payment object interaction at one of the NFC reader or the chip card reader.

4. The point of sale system of claim 1, wherein the user interface is configured to receive a payment authorization receives a signature or PIN.

5. A payment object reader comprising:

a contactless object reader configured to communicate with a contactless enabled payment object;

a chip object reader having an electrical contact that is configured to contact a chip of a chip payment object to read the chip payment object;

an antenna configured to communicate with a merchant device;

a microcontroller configured to execute instructions effective to receive payment object information from one of the contactless object reader or the chip object reader, and to cause the antenna to transmit the payment object information to the merchant device;

a wireless communication protocol adaptor configured to transmit the payment object information via the antenna over a wireless local area network to a second wireless communication protocol adaptor of the merchant device; and

a battery configured to supply power to each of the contactless object reader, the chip object reader, the antenna, the microcontroller and the wireless communication protocol adaptor.

6. The payment object reader of claim 5, wherein the instructions are effective to selectively activate the contactless object reader, the chip object reader, and the antenna.

7. The payment object reader of claim 5, further comprising:

a wake-up circuit configured to activate the microcontroller upon a payment object interaction at one of the contactless object reader and the chip object reader.

8. The payment object reader of claim 7, further comprising a touch sensor configured to sense a touch, and upon sensing a touch activates the wake-up circuit.

9. The payment object reader of claim 7, wherein, once the microcontroller is activated, the microcontroller is configured to power down the wake-up circuit.

10. The payment object reader of claim 5, further comprising an accelerometer, wherein the accelerometer activates a wake-up circuit.

11. The payment object reader of claim 5, wherein the battery is a rechargeable battery.

12. The payment object reader of claim 5, wherein the chip object reader implements the Europay, Mastercard, Visa (EMV) protocol.

13. The payment object reader of claim 5, wherein the instructions are effective to receive a PIN from a merchant device, and to compare the PIN with the payment object information.

14. The payment object reader of claim 5, wherein the payment object reader does not include an interface able to receive a PIN.

15. A method comprising:

reading, by a battery operated payment object reader, a payment object to extract payment object information, the battery operated payment object reader comprising a contactless object reader configured to communicate with a contactless enabled payment object, and a chip object reader having an electrical contact that is configured to contact a chip of a chip payment object to read the chip payment object;

receiving, by the battery operated payment object reader via a wireless communication protocol, a payment authorization of a holder of the payment object from a merchant device;

comparing, by the battery operated payment object reader, a personal identification number (PIN) code with the payment object information; and

transmitting, by the wireless communication protocol of the battery operated payment object reader, the payment object information over a wireless local area network to the merchant device.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising;

selectively activating one of a chip object reader and the contactless object reader to read the payment object.

17. The method of claim 15 comprising:

sensing a touch using a touch sensor; and

upon sensing the touch, activating a microcontroller.

18. The method of claim 15 comprising:

detecting an object interaction at one at one of a contactless object reader and a chip object reader; and

upon the detection of the object interaction, activating a microcontroller.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the payment object is an EMV chip payment object.

20. The method of claim 18, comprising:

once the microcontroller is activated, powering down a wake-up circuit.